Chapter 107: Battle of North Soqya (Part 3)
Soqya Peninsula, Little Sassinian City-State.
Eric Scamario, dressed in coarse cloth, looked at the middle-aged man opposite him and asked, "Gareth, have you decided what to do?"
"How dare you still linger in Little Sassinian? Aren't you afraid I'll send you to the gallows?" The middle-aged man, Gareth, glared at Eric.
Eric smiled and said, "Gareth, we've known each other for nearly ten years. Why must you try to scare me like this?"
Gareth was an elder of Little Sassinian and Eric's former business partner. After Charlotte decided on a strategy of fighting while negotiating, Eric proactively took on the task of negotiating with Little Sassinian. He infiltrated Little Sassinian again and found his old acquaintance.
Gareth sneered, "Since we're old friends, you should understand that I would never betray my city-state for a bit of money."
"Why do you say that?" Eric smiled and shook his head. "When did I ask you to betray your city-state? The Viscount of Lanwan merely wishes to ally with your esteemed city-state, and that is what I told you."
Indeed, Eric's negotiation task this time was to persuade Little Sassinian to ally with their side. This sounded somewhat absurd; after all, both sides were still at war. Persuading an enemy to ally with oneself – what was that if not a fantasy? However, both Charlotte and Eric felt there was room for discussion.
"Since its founding, Little Sassinian has always been a member of the Ivy Alliance. Yet you want me to persuade the Council of Elders to ally with the Viscount of Lanwan. If this isn't betraying the city-state, what is?" Gareth retorted.
"We have no intention of asking Little Sassinian to withdraw from the Ivy Alliance," Eric shrugged. "The Viscount of Lanwan merely wishes to establish an economic alliance with Little Sassinian."
"Economic alliance?" This was the first time Gareth had heard this term.
"Yes," Eric said. "The Viscount of Lanwan is willing to provide a large loan to help Little Sassinian rebuild and resume production. After Little Sassinian resumes production, you will need to sell your wool and ore to the Viscount of Lanwan at a relatively reasonable price until the loan is repaid. You see, this kind of economic alliance is undoubtedly a win-win situation."
Gareth frowned slightly upon hearing this. The proposal was indeed quite tempting for Little Sassinian, which was in dire need of reconstruction. He found it a bit hard to believe that the Viscount of Lanwan, who had been so aggressive not long ago, would suddenly become so benevolent.
Just as Gareth was lost in thought, a servant suddenly burst in, looking anxious.
"What is it? Can't you see I have a guest?" Gareth frowned and scolded.
"Master," the servant bowed, "Lord Apo has led the citizen-soldiers out on campaign."
"What!" Gareth nearly leaped from the sofa, grabbing the servant's collar. "The Council of Elders hasn't issued the order to march. By what right does he lead troops out?"
"I... I don't know, but Lord Apo has indeed already marched out..." The servant's face turned pale, frightened by Gareth's furious expression.
Swish, swish, swish...
The sound of footsteps and weapons clashing echoed from outside the window.
Gareth rushed to the window, opened it, and saw columns of citizen-soldiers passing by his doorstep.
Apo, mounted on his warhorse, stood by the roadside, urging the citizen-soldiers to maintain formation and quicken their pace.
Gareth hurried downstairs, went out into the street, and questioned Apo, "Elder Apo, the Council of Elders has not yet issued the order to march. Why have you suddenly marched out?"
Apo, on horseback, bowed slightly to Gareth and explained, "Elder Gareth, I received news from an informant this morning that the Viscount of Lanwan has already launched a surprise attack on Dolrcocha. We in Little Sassinian must immediately march out and pose a sufficient threat to Ambratu. Only then can we force the Viscount of Lanwan to withdraw from Dolrcocha."
Apo paused for a moment, then added, "If we're lucky, we might even be able to take Ambratu. Time is precious, and I cannot wait for the Council of Elders to convene another meeting."
"You..."
Gareth was about to reprimand Apo for disrespecting the Council of Elders, but Apo had already spurred his horse and ridden off with the citizen-soldier column out of the city. Gareth felt a lump in his chest, his fingers trembling slightly.
Eric, who had appeared behind Gareth at some point, suddenly had an idea upon seeing this. He said, "This man already disregards the Council of Elders. If he achieves another great merit, will the Council of Elders still be able to command him in the future?"
Gareth's face flushed red, then turned pale. He remained speechless for a long time.
Soqya Peninsula, Dolrcocha City-State.
Charlotte had Jack Moore bring three freshly captured prisoners to interrogate them about these weapons.
The first prisoner refused to speak. Charlotte unhesitatingly ordered him killed. Then she questioned the second prisoner. The second prisoner hemmed and hawed. Charlotte had Old Jack kill him too, and then questioned the third.
The third prisoner finally broke down, spilling everything he knew like beans from a bamboo tube.
The oil in these spheres was known in the Soqya region as "foul oil." In some parts of the Soqya central mountain range, this oil seeped out. Where this oil flowed, hardly any grass grew. At the same time, it was extremely difficult to ignite. When finally lit, it emitted poisonous smoke and a very pungent odor, making it unusable as fuel for ordinary people, hence the name "foul oil."
Although the populace disliked it, Fidi had once used this oil to defeat the griffin troops of the Lethalia Kingdom. This oil had extremely strong adhesive properties; once it stained a surface, it was very difficult to clean. For griffin knights, this viscous oil posed a considerable threat because griffins had extremely wide wings. If their wings were contaminated, not only would it be difficult for the griffins to fly normally, but they might even lose the ability to use their "Wind Control" miracle.
Moreover, foul oil was not entirely unignitable. In another room, Charlotte saw several boxes of small sticks, seven or eight centimeters long and finger-thick. These sticks were made by compressing a mixture of two extraordinary materials: quenched stone and spark agate. When these sticks collided, they produced very dangerous sparks that could easily ignite the foul oil. However, ordinary people certainly couldn't afford such flints.
In the city, the fighting continued.
As if to prove their mettle and bravery to the invaders, a number of Dolrcochan citizens far exceeding Charlotte's expectations took up spears and shields from their homes to resist the aggressors. Some were awakened, some were not; some had not yet reached service age, while others were already disabled veterans.
However, this resistance was doomed to be weak, futile, and ineffective.
They had no organization, no command, and didn't even understand what was happening. They could only be driven straight through by the enemy, who held an absolute advantage, in a state of confusion.
"Hah!"
Celine let out a explosive shout, exerting her full strength. Her wings of light suddenly appeared, and her bulging muscles visibly strained her armguards. Her greatsword struck furiously, whistling through the air.
The Dolrcochan citizen-soldier opposite her raised his shield to meet the blow. Sword and shield clashed, and the immense force transmitted through it caused the citizen-soldier to lose his grip on the shield. The greatsword sent the shield flying and then landed on the citizen-soldier's helmet. The helmet was quite thick and withstood the slash, but it didn't change the outcome of this exchange.
The powerful greatsword blow, even through the helmet, knocked the citizen-soldier unconscious.
After felling the citizen-soldier, Celine didn't deliver a finishing blow but continued to charge forward with her sword, leading the way.
Ahead, a well-equipped and orderly troop of citizen-soldiers was escorting a group of finely dressed elderly, women, and children towards the Council of Elders.
Although Celine didn't know who those people were, since the enemy was protecting them so carefully, they must be important figures. Capturing them was the right thing to do.
The cousins Costa Scamario and Adams Bell had just caught up to Celine, intending to lend a hand, but Celine dispatched her opponent in a flash and charged off again.
These two had been chasing Celine for a while. To be precise, Celine's entire knight squad had been chasing her. Because Celine charged too fast, their knight squad was stretched into a long line. Costa and Adams were already among the fastest.
"This is supposed to be a battle, but it feels more like a race on our side," Costa couldn't help complaining. "Celine is doing all the fighting herself."
"Isn't it good not to have to fight?"
Adams panted slightly. The streets here twisted and turned, making it impossible for horses to gallop, so Adams and the others had to dismount and chase Celine on foot.
"Let's stop chatting. If we talk any longer, Celine will be even further ahead."
Costa, resigned, could only continue to chase Celine with Adams, their armor clanking.
The citizen-soldiers successfully escorted those important people into the Council of Elders. Celine, following closely behind, didn't hesitate and charged straight into the Council of Elders as well.
"Not good!"
Adams was startled by this and hurriedly ran a few steps, wanting to follow and provide support.
The entrance to the Council of Elders was narrow. Standing outside, one's line of sight through the doorway only revealed a wall, making it impossible to discern the situation inside. It was very dangerous for Celine to rush in so recklessly.
Sure enough, before Adams even reached the doorway, Celine had already retreated, stumbling a few steps and falling backward onto the ground, her front bristling with a dozen thick crossbow bolts like a hedgehog.
Costa and Adams worked together, dragging Celine back several tens of meters, away from the entrance of the Council of Elders.
"Cough, cough, cough..."
Celine finally managed to catch her breath, letting out a series of violent coughs.
"Celine, don't you dare die on us," Adams joked. "Otherwise, Knight Ed will definitely hold us accountable."
"Cough, cough, I... I'm fine," Celine said, wiping the blood from her lips.
The astonishingly protective ice gem steel armor had saved Celine's life. All the crossbow bolts were stuck in the armor, causing no fatal injuries.
By noon, the Lanwan Viscountcy soldiers had basically cleared all organized resistance within the city, leaving only the Council of Elders unbreached.
Throughout this process, the Gray Cloak Knights provided considerable assistance. The previous night, under the cover of darkness, they had quietly left numerous markings throughout the city, guiding the Lanwan knights' attack routes. After the Gray Cloak Knights' personnel rendezvoused with the siege forces, they personally led the army, quickly controlling Dolrcocha's various public treasuries and preventing the possibility of Dolrcochan citizen-soldiers choosing to burn the treasuries in a mutual destruction.
"Is this Council of Elders difficult to attack?"
Charlotte also arrived at the small square in front of the Council of Elders, looking at the white stone building, and asked.
"This Council of Elders is actually a small castle. The walls are ridiculously thick, and the internal passages are winding and narrow. It would definitely be difficult to attack with manpower alone," Robin Mancini, who had come to meet her, explained to Charlotte. "But it's not a big problem. This afternoon, if you have the griffins give it a few swipes, it naturally won't hold."
The two griffins had just completed a long-distance raid and fought for an entire morning. They were currently resting. If they weren't allowed to rest, these two griffins would genuinely go on strike.
After a moment of thought, Charlotte pointed at the Council of Elders and said to Old Jack, "Let's not waste time. Bring that foul oil, douse it, and set it on fire."
"Yes." Old Jack immediately took men to carry out the order.
"There are still elderly and children inside..." Celine quietly reminded Charlotte.
"Are the elderly and children of ordinary families qualified to enter the Council of Elders?" Charlotte retorted.
Celine was speechless.
Baskets and barrels of foul oil were brought out and then splashed and thrown onto the outer walls and roof of the Council of Elders.
The people inside the Council of Elders seemed to sense that something was amiss and tried to rush out again, but they were driven back by the arrows of the waiting knights and knight-squires.
Although Oran knights usually gave the impression of being "tin cans," longbow proficiency was actually a compulsory skill for them. Moreover, with the "Eagle Eye" ability, Oran knights typically possessed decent archery skills.
Special flints struck the walls of the Council of Elders, sparks flew, and then the fire spread rapidly.
In just a short while, the entire Council of Elders became a giant torch.
The residents of Dolrcocha could see the black smoke billowing into the sky from any corner of the city.
That ominous blackness seemed to signify the city's collapse.
At this time, Badan City-State.
The new day in Badan was still bustling and peaceful. The meeting regarding the command of the North Soqya Frontline allied forces began once again. The attendees were still the six major city-states: Dolrcocha, Little Sassinian, Badan, Camela, Sudaman, and Koloro.
After successfully bribing Pishos, Elder Balotelli of Dolrcocha had originally felt that today's outcome was a certainty. The command would most likely fall to Badan, and the commander of the allied forces would most likely be his son-in-law, Giovanni Draghi.
Pishos took the money and did his part. He abstained from voting, supporting neither Badan nor Camela.
Balotelli cast his vote for Badan. Sudaman, which had always been friendly with Dolrcocha, followed suit and voted for Badan. Originally, the meeting should have announced the result then: three to one, command should belong to Badan.
However, at this moment, Koloro, the small city-state that had remained silent, pulled a trick.
Koloro's representative spoke at the meeting, "The North Soqya Frontline was proposed by Elder Cleon of Fidi. We don't have a commander here who can command widespread respect. Why don't we go to Fidi and invite Elder Cleon back to command the allied forces?"
Fidi's name carried immense weight. The Ivy Alliance's allied forces had always been commanded by the elders of Fidi during campaigns. Therefore, Koloro's proposal was practically the politically correct stance among the Ivy Alliance city-states.
Camela, which had already lost its chance at command, reacted immediately. Their representative was the first to stand up, expressing agreement to let Elder Cleon take command. Camela's intention was clearly that if they couldn't get command of the allied forces, they didn't want to hand it over to Badan either.
The second to stand up in support was Sudaman. Although on good terms with Dolrcocha, these tiny city-states on the Soqya Peninsula, often with only about a hundred superhumans, tended to stick together.
Pishos looked left and right, then, under Balotelli's glare, also raised his hand. He had only said last night that he wouldn't support Camela; he hadn't said he wouldn't support Koloro.
The Badan representative, facing a complete disadvantage and estimating it would be difficult to secure command, didn't want to offend an elder from Fidi either, so he also raised his hand.
Finally, Balotelli, with no other choice, raised his hand.
Cleon was unanimously elected as the commander of the North Soqya Frontline.
The six major city-states unanimously decided to first send envoys to Fidi to bring back the founder of the North Soqya Frontline before dispatching troops to attack the Viscount of Lanwan.
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